with Seattle MLK Jr Organizing Coalition
Date: January 15th, 2pm-3pm PST
Workshop Description
"Decline" and “Auto-decline” refer to state laws that allow for the juvenile system to decline its jurisdiction over a minor who has been charged with certain serious offenses. This means that in those cases, children are tried in adult court. This webinar will educate our community on this harmful practice, and discuss strategies and solutions to ending Decline/Auto-Decline.
Presenters
Anthony Powers, Re-entry Programs Director, Seattle Clemency Project and Founder of the American Equity & Justice Group
Vidal Vincent, Facilitator to the Legislative Committee of the Black Prisoners Caucus, Staffer Creek Chapter
David Heppard, Executive Director of the Freedom Project
Nikkita Oliver, Executive Director, Creative Justice
Anita Khandelwal, Director of The Department of Public Defense, King County
Stephan Thomas, Former King County Deputy Prosecutor
Rina, Parent
Geavoni, Currently incarcerated
Moderators: Dyneeca Adams, Member of Kids are Kids and Legal Resource for the Freedom Project and Bana Abera, Project Manager, Social Justice Fund.
Bios
Nikkita Oliver (they/them) is a Seattle-based creative, community organizer, abolitionist, educator, and attorney. Working at the intersections of arts, law, education, and community organizing, Nikkita strives to create experiences which draw us closer to our humanity and invites us to imagine what we hope to see in the future. Nikkita is the executive director of Creative Justice, an arts-based healing, engaged space for youth and young adults.
Anita Khandelwal, the director of the Department of Public Defense, was appointed to a four-year term by the County Executive in October 2018 and confirmed by the County Council in November 2018. Before becoming the director, Anita served as DPD's deputy director and policy director, identifying systemic issues and criminal legal policies in need of reform, drafting internal policies to encourage best practices, providing ethics counsel, bargaining union contracts, and more.
Stephan M. Thomas is a Senior Partner at Sofia, a social impact advisory firm that equips partners with the tools and skills to build positive work culture, deepen partnerships with the communities they serve, and to implement diverse, equitable, and inclusive office polices. Before joining Sofia, Stephan served as the Director of Strategy and Implementation at Prosecutor Impact, where he designed and implemented a leadership development initiative for prosecutor executive teams and facilitated experiential learning opportunities for front line prosecutors.
About the Seattle MLK Jr. Organizing Coalition
The Seattle MLK Jr. Organizing Coalition is an all-volunteer organization composed of grassroots, labor, business, people of color, and progressive community organizations and volunteers from throughout the Puget Sound region. Annually, these groups come together and organize our community's largest tribute to the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - the only geographic jurisdiction named in Dr. King's honor. Learn More Here
